It's been one year since Senior U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson ruled in a lawsuit filed by Alabama and Florida that the Army Corps of Engineers exceeded their authority in allowing water withdrawals from Lake Lanier to meet the water supply needs of metro Atlanta's 3.5 million residents. In his order, Judge Magnuson made it clear that the only way to meet the needs of the metro area is for Congress to authorize Lake Lanier for water supply. The judge stayed his ruling until 2012 to give Georgia time to seek that authorization.

I am unalterably, unequivocally, and un-any other word you can conjure up opposed to school vouchers. I consider them somewhere south of Gov. George E. Perdue's beloved horse barn that got tanked earlier this year.

Many people, whether they admit it or not, have considered ways to serve others. To many, the desire to help fellow men, women and children is a continuous voice or vision, often brought on by a life-changing event.

MOULTRIE - We're all sitting there at the breakfast club, and someone begins talking about his new cell phone. It can do a lot of stuff, but it can't pour coffee nor can it scramble my sausage and eggs into my grits. So I'm left with some comfort zone. What I mean is, I don't think my life is totally about advanced technology and gizmos. There are still books to be read, there are still sticks to be whittled and there are still songs to be sung in the shower.

The recent acceptance of $8.3 billion in taxpayer-backed loan guarantees by the builders of the Vogtle nuclear reactors seems like good news for Georgia electric customers. Nationwide taxpayers will now share in the costs and risks that had been on the shoulders of the customers of the utilities building the two reactors.

The sporting world has lost its mind. During a primetime media spectacle Thursday night on ESPN, NBA star LeBron James announced he will leave the Cleveland Cavaliers to join the Miami Heat. The fanfare swirling around the event, the palpable buzz it generated and the press' exaggerated analysis of the six teams stumbling over each other to woo "King James" was downright embarrassing.

This time of year is referred to as "dog days." That is because state government feels that in appreciation for your tax contributions this is a great time to hound you with a bunch of new laws, regulations and similar irritations that usually become effective July 1. Hence, dog days.

Articles by Section - Opinion

Editor, On Dec. 16, 1773, demonstrators destroyed an entire shipment of tea in the Boston Harbor in protest of taxation without representation. Today, we have ultra-taxation with representation. At the rate that we are going, we will just sign over our employment checks and accept the spending money that our government gives us.

If you watched the Super Bowl a couple of weeks ago - and reports say that 114 million of us did - perhaps you saw a portion of the reprehensible behavior of Seattle wide receiver Doug Baldwin who, after scoring a touchdown, proceeded to mime pulling down his pants and squatting as if on a commode, before dropping the ball to the ground as if using the restroom. The NFL fined Baldwin $11,000, which has to be chump change to this boor. Astonishingly, the incident has gotten very little mention in the media. You can bet this kind of obscene showboating ...

The Georgia Senate had a busy week. We held numerous committee meetings to review legislation and listen to testimony either opposing or supporting bills being considered. The committee process is where the bills are vetted before being considered by the Senate, and it is a crucial part of the legislative process.

February 11, 2015|
By State Sen. Ben Watson
Special to the Courier
|Opinion

What mystical powder or elixir anoints our elected officials with the knowledge contained in the Encyclopedia Britannica and all the experience amassed by mankind since Adam and Eve? Apparently, the substance - whatever it is - imparts this knowledge and experience within the first 30 seconds of being sworn into office.